Mayoral Succession Mess

On Election Day, New York City voters will answer a seemingly straightforward question should the city charter be amended to require a special election within a short time period (approximately 60 days) after an unexpected vacancy in the office of the mayor? But the referendum on the November ballot is far from simple, as Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum readily points out.
There is a second part to the referendum, which, if approved by voters, would remove the public advocate from her role as the presiding official of the City Council, a position Gotbaum calls a "key power" of her office.
"Ive always been in favor of shortening the time period between a vacancy and a special election," Gotbaum told the Forum Courier in an interview. "But Ive never been in favor of taking away the power to preside over the Council."As the citys ombudsman, the public advocate monitors government agencies and addresses peoples problems with city government.
The decision to link the powers of the public advocate with the issue of mayoral succession was made by the New York City Charter Commission, a 13-member body appointed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg in July to make proposals on revising the City Charter.
Under current charter regulations, the public advocate is in the direct line of succession if the mayors office becomes vacant for any reason, but commission members express concern that an interim mayor could be in office for as long as 15 months before the holding of a special election, a time period they describe as "undemocratic" and a "hindrance" in government operations. To shorten the time period, the city charter has to accommodate a New York State law that outlines the citys mayoral succession plan. Of the available options, a commission report said, "changing who performs the ceremonial role of presiding officer of the City Council was by far the least intrusive." Despite the changes, the public advocate would still be able to introduce legislation, debate, and serve on committees in the Council. But Gotbaum argues that her position in the City Council is far from ceremonial. "Its not clear if shell be able to co-sponsor legislation anymore," said Anat Jacobson, Gotbaums press secretary. "Without that power, it really diminishes the office."
In the past, the public advocate has been able to bring many issues before the public such as child welfare through the City Council.
"As public advocate from 1994 to 2001," Mark Green wrote in the The New York Times on September 10, "I found that the legal mandate to be a
counterweight to the mayor was greatly enhanced by my visibility and role within the Council."
Gotbaum also argues that the charter commission had an additional option the city can work with the State Legislature to change the time period between a vacancy and a special election without affecting the office of the public advocate.But the commission warns of new security concerns in the post 9/11 New York City.
"The possibility of something happening to our elected officials is greater than ever," said the commission report. "If theres a time to think about the best way to fill a vacancy, the time is now."
The short timeframe for the commission to do its work less than two months made it impossible for the public to have real input into charter changes, according to Gotbaum. She accuses the commission of being "deceptive."
"If they had discussed this with us," said Jacobson, "we would have happily worked with them to get the necessary changes in New York State law."
The limited timeframe, however, was the reason the commission decided against trying to make changes in state law, according to an official.
The commission report also noted that the 13-member body decided against dealing with the more complicated issue of who should actually succeed the mayor if a vacancy arises, although it claimed that the public advocate was an inappropriate choice, because the position has little involvement with the day-to-day running of the city.
Despite these complications, Gotbaum argues that voters chose her to be public advocate in last Novembers elections based on the offices current powers. "I was elected to do a certain job," she said. "Give me a chance to do that job."
Ballot Question on Mayoral Succession:
Shall the charter be amended to require a special election in about 60 days after a mayoral vacancy (in addition to the later general election to fill the vacancy), with a runoff election if no candidate receives at least 40 % of the vote, and to make the speaker of the Council responsible for presiding over meetings of the City Council instead of the public advocate?